Banu Hāshim

association with Muḥammad

Muhammad was born in 570 of the Hāshimite (Banū Hāshim) branch of the noble house of ʿAbd Manāf; though orphaned at an early age and, in consequence, with little influence, he never lacked protection by his clan. Marriage to a wealthy widow improved his position as a merchant, but he began to make his mark in Mecca by preaching the oneness of Allah. Rejected by the...

Soon after this momentous event in the history of Arabia, Muhammad was born in Mecca. His father, ʿAbd Allāh, and his mother, Āminah, belonged to the family of the Banū Hāshim, a branch of the powerful Quraysh, the ruling tribe of Mecca, that also guarded its most sacred shrine, the Kaʿbah. Because ʿAbd Allāh died before Muhammad’s birth, Āminah...

...However, most influential figures and families rejected his call, especially those prominent in trade. Even within his family there were skeptics. Although Muhammad gained the support of many of the Banū Hāshim, his uncle Abū Lahab, a major leader of the Quraysh, remained adamantly opposed to Islam and Muhammad’s mission. These naysayers feared that the new religion, based on...

history of Arabia

...but on Muhammad’s death Abū Bakr, the first caliph, aided by his own eventual successor, ʿUmar, gained the leadership that Quraysh might have lost to others. They were not of the house of Hāshim, which, from the outset, felt cheated of its rights. ʿAlī, Muhammad’s stepbrother and son-in-law, became the focus of legitimist claims to succeed the Prophet....